Ear Infections and Eye Injuries
Chronic ear infections can signal the fact that your boxer has an allergy to something he is eating on a regular basis. However, an ear infection might also be caused by mites. In both cases, your vet can provide you with treatment. In any event, if your boxer has chronic or recurring ear infections, or if your boxer is scratching at his ears or shaking his head, or if the ear seems red and hot or has a smelly discharge of any kind, it is time to see the vet.
Like many other breeds that have large, slightly protruding eyes, boxers get their fair share of eye injuries. Most boxer owners have at least one dog who has scratched the cornea of his eye at least once. Sometimes the scratch will be related to something specific, such as being scratched by a cat or by jumping into a tree after a squirrel. Just as often, you will not have any idea how the injury occurred.
If you find your boxer getting most of his ear infections during the summer months, you may have a boxer who likes to play in water. Many like to bite the water coming out of a hose or sprinkler head or stick their heads under running water. As innocuous as this may sound, getting water in their ears can be a cause of ongoing, chronic ear infections for many boxers. If you notice that your boxer's ear infections correspond with warmer weather, you may need to restrict his water playtime.
Signs of a scratched cornea are as follows:
Your boxer squints on one side of his or her face.
Your boxer has one eye that is suddenly pointed in a different direction.
Your boxer has bloody tears dripping out of his eye.
You need to get to your vet immediately to be sure that no infection sets in and for antibiotics and an ophthalmic ointment to make sure the scratch on the cornea does not need stitching. If the cornea is abraded over a large area, or if the cornea is having difficulty healing, your boxer may need his eyelid sewn shut to enable the eye to heal. He may also need a partial grid grid over the damaged area with a laser to get the body to send more blood to the area and heal the cornea. Boxers over the age of about seven seem to have a harder time healing eye injuries. If you wait too long before getting attention for this emergency, the cornea can become necrotic, and your boxer may lose his sight or even his eye. Never delay getting treatment for your boxer if you suspect an eye injury.
Making sure your boxer never wanders too far out of sight is one way to prevent injuries.
